The annual Kids Haven career expo on October 10 opened new possibilities for Samuel Mnisi, sparking his interest in the fields of electricity generation and agro-ecology.

Mnisi, who is part of the Kids Haven Pathway Programme, was among the curious attendees who visited various stalls to quiz experts about career opportunities and study options.

“I learnt a range of things. It was what I expected from the colleges and organisations here, but there were also things I didn’t expect, like the electrical institute. They advised me not to focus only on longer courses, but to consider short courses too,” said Mnisi.

The Tsakane resident said the expo challenged his perception of electrical work, revealing the depth of theory and practical training involved.

“I’ve always thought of it as something simplistic – just working with electricity – but there’s a deep theory behind it. You have to go to an institute to fully understand it theoretically before putting it into practice,” he said.

Agro-ecology was another unexpected discovery that broadened his perspective on possible career paths.

“I didn’t expect to see agro-ecologists because I thought it was just me scrolling on my phone at night, learning about this crazy theory. Seeing it represented by an organisation changed my perspective because I realised the world is much more diverse.

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“This is what the expo represents. There are so many layers to what my future career could be. It was very informative,” he said.

Independent local publisher Jacana Media’s commercial director, Shay Heydenrych, said the organisation attended to highlight the diverse skills required in the publishing industry.

“Many of the children who visited our stall had no idea how a book is made or what skills a publishing house needs. Even if they’re interested in mathematics, those skills are needed in publishing because we have a finance department,” she said.

Heydenrych added that the creative interests of many attendees also aligned with opportunities in the industry, particularly illustration.

“We had lots of youngsters who are artistic, enjoy drawing and are into anime. We have a very interesting children’s list, and both picture books and adult books need illustrators for their covers,” she said.

Kids Haven’s Ilke Stein said the expo aims to expose children to a wide range of career opportunities, helping them discover paths they may not previously have considered.

“We came across young people who know five or six careers. We started to say for many of them they become what they know. If you only know a social worker or teacher then your whole perspective is limited. The big part is to open that and say there’s so much out there.

“That’s the encouragement. We are trying to get some of your unusual careers here. We have an independent book publisher, agriculture, Joburg City Park that has a variety of jobs, as well as electrical engineers. The intention is to open up and give them different ideas and perspectives,” she said.

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